Julian Assange Walks Free After 12 Years: A New Chapter Begins
Washington, DC [US], June 26: Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, walked out of a courtroom in Saipan as a free man for the first time in 12 years. A US judge approved his plea deal on Wednesday morning. Assange left the courtroom, waved to reporters, and headed to the airport to fly to Canberra, Australia.
Assange’s Legal Journey
Assange’s US lawyer, Barry Pollack, stated that Assange had suffered greatly in his fight for free speech and press freedom. Pollack emphasized that Assange’s prosecution was unprecedented in the 100 years of the Espionage Act. He argued that Assange revealed truthful, newsworthy information and should not have been charged under the Espionage Act.
Assange was released from a high-security prison in London on Monday and had already left the UK before the world learned about his agreement with the US government. The 52-year-old Australian appeared in a US courtroom on the Northern Mariana Islands to formalize the agreement. He pleaded guilty to conspiring to unlawfully obtain and share classified information.
Assange’s Statement
In court, Assange admitted, “I am, in fact, guilty of the charge.” He explained that he encouraged his source to provide classified information to publish it, believing that the First Amendment protected his actions. However, he acknowledged the difficulty of winning such a case.
Judge’s Sentencing
Judge Ramona Manglona credited Assange for the time he served in a UK prison, stating that his 62-month imprisonment was fair and reasonable. She allowed Assange to walk out of the courtroom as a free man, hoping for peace to be restored.
Background
Julian Assange and WikiLeaks gained attention in 2010 after leaks from former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning. The website shared a video of a US military helicopter firing on and killing two journalists and several Iraqi civilians in 2007. Later, it disclosed over 90,000 classified Afghan war documents.
In 2010, Assange faced allegations of sexual assault in Sweden. In 2012, he sought asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he stayed for almost seven years until his arrest in 2019. Assange originally faced 18 criminal charges but entered a guilty plea to a single charge as part of an agreement with the US Justice Department. His 62-month sentence equated to the time he spent fighting extradition in the UK.
